BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Members of Tri-County Rural Electric Cooperative are represented by the Board of Directors. Board members in each district are tasked with advocating for their constituency and deciding the strategic initiatives undertaken by the cooperative.
Jerome Sasala has resided in the area since 1969, when he was hired as a music teacher by the Cameron County School District. He moved to Potter County after purchasing a farm near Austin in 1982.
Sasala has worked in education as an elementary and secondary teacher, assistant principal, elementary and secondary principal and, for the past several years, served as the superintendent of the Austin Area School District. In addition, he has worked as a carpenter, home builder, plumber and residential electrician.
He holds a bachelor’s degree in education and a Master of Arts from the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He obtained a master’s degree in administration from St. Bonaventure University.
He and his wife, Judy, reside on their working beef farm and are the parents of two grown children.
District 1 includes Homer, Keating, Portage, Summit, Sylvania and Wharton in Potter County; Grove and Lumber in Cameron County; Liberty and Norwich in McKean County.
Valery J. Robbins is a resident of Potter County’s Sweden Township. She and her husband, Chris, operate a fourth-generation family crop farm in Allegany and Ulysses townships, producing Pennsylvania-certified seed potatoes and seed oats, along with chip and table potatoes and green snap beans. They have one grown son.
Valery was elected as vice-chairman of the board in July 2020.
Prior to joining the family farm, Robbins spent a significant amount of time employed in the telecommunication industry, serving in a management capacity in customer care with Adelphia and also as a business analyst with Level 3 Communications. She is currently a member of the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, a past member of Women in Cable & Telecommunications and a past director of the Coudersport Alliance Daycare and Learning Center.
District 2 includes Hector, Pike, Ulysses, Allegany, Sweden, Hebron, Eulalia, Clara, Pleasant Valley, and Roulette townships in Potter County.
Nick Reitter is a retired professor from Alfred State College, where he taught electrical engineering technology. He also has work experience as an electrician and was project engineer for Steam Power Control Systems. My background provides me the opportunity to help Tri-County stay on the leading edge of new technology, he said. This can provide the members the best possible service in the most economical manner.
Reitters community involvement has included serving on the Genesee Library board of directors, church treasurer, member of the Genesee Grange, assistant Scoutmaster, member of the Masonic Lodge #556, chairman of the board for Wonder Works, head of the Potter County 4-H Expansion and Review Committee, and teacher with the Potter County Educational Council. A Tri-County member for 27 years, Nick and his wife, Marjorie Ann, reside in Genesee and have seven grown children.
District 3 includes Bingham, Genesee, Harrison, Oswayo and Sharon in Potter County; Brookfield and Westfield in Tioga County; Ceres in McKean County.
James R. Davis of Farmington Township represents District 4 on the Tri-County board of directors.
Davis also serves on the boards of directors of Allegheny Electric Cooperative, Tri-County's wholesale power supplier. He has also served on the board of directors of National Cooperative Services Corporation, a national cooperative banking operation.
A managing partner of James Daniel Associates, an educational consulting firm, Davis is retired from the Northern Tioga School District, where he was assistant superintendent. During his career as a professional educator, Davis served as a mathematics teacher, coach, counselor, principal and college professor. He serves as Farmington Township auditor and is a member of the River Valley Country Club board of directors.
Davis and his wife, Elaine, reside in Farmington Township. They have three grown sons.
District 4 includes Chatham, Deerfield, Elkland, Farmington, Middlebury, Nelson, Osceola, Shippen, Clymer, and Gaines townships in Tioga County.
Matthew S. Whiting, P.E., of Lawrence Township was elected to represent District 5 on the Tri-County board of directors during the cooperative’s 2014 Annual Meeting. Mr. Whiting served as chairman of the board from 2016 to July 2020.
Matt is a licensed professional engineer in Pennsylvania and New York and retired in 2015 from Corning Inc. after a 32 year career that included senior leadership roles in research and development, software, electrical and systems engineering, and project management.
A native of Wellsboro, Whiting graduated from Williamson High School and holds bachelor’s degrees from Mansfield University and Alfred University, and a master’s degree in civil engineering from Norwich University. Matt recently completed the CCD (Credentialed Cooperative Director) certificate program in 2016 and is working towards the BLC (Board Leadership Certificate).
Whiting is a deacon and treasurer of the East Lawrence Baptist Church. He has been a member of Tri-County since 2000.
Matt and his wife, Linda, have three children, April Parker, Sarah Whiting and Jason Whiting.
District 5 includes the Wells Township in Bradford County, and Jackson, Lawrence, Richmond, Rutland and Tioga townships in Tioga County.
Alfred G. Calkins of East Troy is seeking re-election as District 6 director.
Calkins is a dairy farmer and serves on the executive committee of the Pennsylvania Holstein Association. He has been involved with the Troy Trojans Booster Club, served as a director with the Bradford County Holstein Club and is a life member of the Troy Rod and Gun Club.
Calkins serves as vice president of the Tri-County board of directors and is the president of the C&T Enterprises board of directors. He is also a member of the Wellsboro Electric Co. board of directors.
Calkins and his wife, Sharon, have two sons and four grandchildren.
District 6 includes the townships of Armenia, Columbia, Granville, Troy, Springfield and West Burlington in Bradford County; and Sullivan and Ward in Tioga County.
Janet M. Teeter, was elected to represents District 7 on the Tri-County Board of Directors at the July 2021 annual meeting.
Teeter graduated with an associate degree in accounting from Elmira Business Institute in 1982. In 2012, she also earned the ACH Accredited Professional Certification. Additionally she was a Pennsylvania Notary from 1996-2000 and re-established this position in 2018 and remains current in this role.
Teeter is a mortgage loan officer with the Ingersoll-Rand Federal Credit Union. She has been involved in the banking business for 20 years, starting as a teller and working up to the role of deposit operations supervisor and online banking specialist. Additionally she worked as a production accountant and accounts payable specialist for Leprino Foods for 17 years.
Janet and her husband, Alston, reside in Smithfield Township, and have been members of Tri-County REC since 2017. They have two daughters; Katrina and Stephanie.
Janet enjoys being part of the Encounter Church and working the election polls in Smithfield Township. She also enjoys quilting, crafting and spending time with family.
District 7 serves members in Athens, Ridgebury, Smithfield, South Creek and Ulster townships in Bradford County.
Gerald A. (Arnie) Kriner of Liberty Township, Tioga County, was first elected to the Tri-County Board of Directors in 2016 and has served as chairman of the board since July 2020.
A member of Tri-County Rural Electric Cooperative since 1996, Kriner previously had served as the chairman of Tri-County's Elections and Credentials Committee and also served on the co-op's Member Advisory Committee.
In addition to his service on the Tri-County Board, he also serves as a director on the boards of C&T Enterprises and Valley Energy. Kriner is also a board member of the Endless Mountains Transportation Authority and UPMC Wellsboro.
Kriner and his wife, Lianne, have one adult daughter, son-in-law and two grandchildren.
District 8 includes the townships of Brown, Cogan House, Cummings, McHenry, Pine, Lewis, Jackson, and McIntyre in Lycoming County; Liberty, Morris and Union in Tioga County.
Lowell W. Geiser of Galeton was appointed to the Tri-County Rural Electric Cooperative board of directors in August 2007. He served as the cooperative's chairman of the board from 2012-2016. He has had opportunities to serve as a director on the boards of Wellsboro Electric and C&T Enterprises, subsidiary companies of Tri-County REC & Claverack REC.
A lifelong resident of Potter County, Geiser and his wife, Virginia, own and operate Forest View Evergreen Tree Farms, a business started by Lowell's grandfather in 1925 on the family's Century Farm established in 1887, located in Germania.
A graduate of Galeton Area High School, Geiser was a volunteer with the Germania Fire Co. as a fireman/EMT and served as an Abbott Township supervisor in past years. Geiser is a member of the First Baptist Church of Galeton. He has been a member of Tri-County since 1985.
Since becoming a director, he has completed all three levels of National Rural Electric Cooperative Association leadership training courses focusing on, among other things, cooperative electric distribution and Broadband implementation. These courses help directors in their governance and oversight duties.
District 9 includes the townships of Abbot, Stewardson and West Branch in Potter County; East Keating and Leidy in Clinton County; Elk in Tioga County.
